The Fourth of July
by LexiAmbroseCabana
Summary: Caroline Collins hated the Fourth of July. Damien Sandow actually enjoys the patriotic holiday and gets the Briton to go on an adventure with him. Sandow/OC


Caroline Collins hated the Fourth of July.

It was loud, all the stores closed, and it was one of her few days off since Vince was all about patriotism. She was an American citizen, but this day made her hate other Americans due to her history with this "holiday". Every year in Tampa, it was the one day out of the year that all the rednecks felt it was necessary to be unbelievably rude to anybody from Europe and she wasn't going to stand for it. She was English and she was proud of it, almost DDTing somebody who made a harsh comment about her home country when she and Damien were at a fireworks show the year before. This year, she planned on doing nothing but laying in bed, even though she was sure Damien wouldn't stand for that.

Of course, this was one of the few holidays that Damien didn't find foolish. He wasn't a fan of how stupid people could be and how many injured themselves and others because of their own stupidity with fireworks, but he enjoyed the Fourth of July nonetheless. He tried his best to avoid rednecks but it was almost like Caroline had a magnet that attracted them to her, and he hoped that she was in the mood for going to the fireworks show with him later in the day.

When Damien woke up that morning, he was pleased to see that Caroline was still cuddled up to him and fast asleep. Their breathing was almost synchronized, and her nose twitched against his bearded cheek briefly. As badly as he wanted to lay there and enjoy this moment of peace, he knew that he needed to go on a run today before he did anything else.

He carefully shifted her onto her pillow, trying his hardest not to wake her while he did so. The soft groan that escaped her lips told him that he disturbed her, but she only turned onto her side and stayed asleep. Something that made him happy, because his Caroline loved her sleep but was often struck with insomnia. So the fact that she was sleeping was an amazing thing to him and he didn't want to ruin that for her.

While on his run, Damien made a list of things that he wanted to do with Caroline that day. There was some Fourth of July festival that looked like fun and a fireworks show, easily taking up most of the day once he finally got her out of bed and fed. The task of the day was to get her to want to go to Fourth of July celebrations of any kind since she was English and didn't see the point in her celebrating the American holiday. She found it to be an excuse for people to get drunk and play with explosives and wanted absolutely no part in watching somebody blow their fingers off.

Once he returned, he saw that Caroline was already awake and dressed in some cutoff jean shorts and a tanktop but had actually left her hair down for once. She was cooking when he gently wrapped his arms around her waist and he peeked into the large pan to see eggs and bacon being cooked.

"Sunny side up, love?" She asked quietly, since he shouldn't have bad a problem hearing her with their close proximity.

"Of course, my dear. Did you sleep well?"

"I did. How was your run that you didn't wake me up for?"

"Sweetheart it had been months since you'd gotten a full night of sleep. I wasn't going to rob you of that." Damien spoke softly. "Especially when you don't really need to be running every day."

"Are you trying to charm me into forgetting, Mr. Sandow?" Caroline asked with a small smile and he smirked before kissing her cheek.

"Perhaps. I'm going to go take a shower, dearest."

"Breakfast will be ready by the time you're done." She assured, smiling when he kissed her softly and gently pat her behind before heading up to shower quickly. By the time he had returned, dressed in just a tshirt and some cargo shorts, Caroline had already plated their breakfast and was taking it to the table. Their mugs were already at the table, Caroline's having the tag for her teabag hanging down the side. After being with Caroline for almost three years, Damien didn't feel the need to ask how she made his coffee, she knew that he liked it black with two packets of the organic sweeter she used whenever she drank coffee.

"What's today's tea, darling?" He asked as they sat down together, takin Caroline's right hand in his left. He loved having an ambidextrous girlfriend because sometimes he never really wanted to let her go, even if they were sitting at the same table. She meant the world to him.

"Vanilla Chai. What did you have planned today?"

"I wanted to check out the festival and fireworks show." Damien spoke quietly while her mouth was full, knowing that she'd never speak with food in her mouth. That way she'd actually think it through before voicing her displeasure.

"Damien, you know I think this holiday is stupid." She mumbled, feeling his thumb brush across her knuckles. She knew that if Damien really wanted to go then she'd suck it up, but she really hated the Fourth of July.

"I know, Caroline. But how often do we have a day to ourselves and spend it looking around. We've been in Detroit for six months and all of our off days have been spent in bed."

"That's not that bad of a thing." She muttered, lightly prodding her eggs around.

"I never said it was." Damien defended, making eye contact with her. "Dearest, you know I'd never force you to do anything. But please, walk around the festival with me or go to the fireworks show. One or the other, and then we can come home and do what you'd like to do."

Caroline knew that it was only fair. All Damien ever wanted was for their relationship to be spent as equals, and she appreciated that. She loved that about him and would never take that for granted. So she gave Damien's hand a gentle squeeze and smiled up at him.

"When does this festival open?"

* * *

Damien was elated to have Caroline by his side while they walked around the festival. Both, being selective about the foods they put into their bodies, we're a bit thrown off by almost everything being fried. But they found a stand specializing in chocolate dipped fruits and Damien got them a small basket of chocolate dipped strawberries to share as they wandered about.

"Is a fried corndog really necessary?" Caroline whispered to Damien as a family walked passed them, each one having a fried corndog in their hand.

"Or the people who fry their twinkies and fruits?" He asked with a small smile, giving her hand a gentle squeeze as he pulled her to a table to sit down.

"Absolutely ridiculous. There's a reason why America is the most obese nation in the world, and it's the deep fryer." She stated, glancing around them warily when Damien offered to feed her a strawberry. It was something they've done plenty of times at home, but doing things like that in public made her a bit wary.

"It's alright, dearest. Nobody knows who we are." He assured, smiling when she leaned in and bit off the strawberry. "Is it fresh?"

"Quite." She spoke once she had swallowed and picked a strawberry out of the basket to feed him. He was much less hesitant and teasingly brought her fingers into his mouth.

"Delicious." He spoke with a smile, taking her hand in his. "The strawberry was good, too."

"Damien." She giggled, smiling when he moved to sit beside her at the table.

Damien wasn't big on PDA, and Caroline wasn't either, so she was a bit surprised when he pulled her into a kiss. His hand came up to cup the back of her neck and she couldn't help but melt into him as her mouth slid open after a second of his gentle coaxing. It was the kisses like this that showed her how much he truly loved and appreciated her, even more so when he was showing such affection in public.

"You are going to be the death of me, Damien Sandow." She breathed once they pulled apart and he smiled, adjusting his hat so he could rest his forehead on hers. No further words were spoken before he pecked her lips and backed off a bit, wrapping his arm around her waist. She leaned against him, picking up another strawberry from their basket.

* * *

She was sure how he did it, but he conned her into attending the fireworks show. So she sat on the blanket they brought, wearing one of Damien's coats while she sat between his legs and he had a blanket wrapped around the both of them. She'd glance up at the fireworks periodically, but she preferred watching Damien watch the fireworks. Even a man as sophisticated as him found wonder in watching the fireworks light up the night sky.

"Are you still awake, dearest?" Damien asked quietly, looking down at her with a small smile.

"It's impossible for me to go to sleep with all this ruckus, love." She muttered, shifting closer to him and feeling his arms tighten around her.

"Did you want to go home?"

"No, I'm fine and you're having a good time."

"But it wouldn't be that good if you weren't having a good time, Caroline."

"Damien, it's fine. Stop talking and watch the fireworks." She stated, guiding him into a sweet kiss. "Alright?"

"I could think of a couple things I'd rather be doing." He murmured, smirk settling on his features when a faint blush settled on her features.

"Watch the fireworks."

Yes, Caroline Collins hated the Fourth of July. So much so that she spent it doing things she didn't want to do with the man she loved.

Maybe next year she wouldn't hate it so much.


End file.
